Design of the corrugated-core sandwich panel for the arctic rescue vehicle

Abstract This paper represents the methodology of analytical design and the selection of the optimal geometry of sandwich panels made of glass fiber reinforced plastic (GFRP) with a thermal insulating core and external heat shielding coating for the rescue vehicles operating in Arctic. The proposed methodology is based on the use of analytical solutions for the problems of thermal physics and structural mechanics for a preliminary assessment of the heat shield and strength characteristics of the panel. In the design process, we solve the optimization problem with objective function of the mass per unit area. Optimization constraints are formulated based on the conditions of thermal protection in a steady-state and transient cooling and heating conditions, strength and local and global buckling under shear, compression and bending of the panel. It is shown that the optimization could be limited by the strongest conditions, which are thermal protection at low temperatures and the condition for the web plate local instability under impact loading. It is shown that the use of a thermal barrier coating inevitably entails significant and not always allowable increase in structural mass, the panel thickness and strength safety factors.